Magazine vending-machine.



J. W. PATTERSON & J. A. WEBS TER. MAGAZINE VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-16,1912.

1,186,031. Patented June 6, 1916.

3 SHEETSSHEET I.

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WITNESSES nwf/vrons a E? doll/L fl. Wbslezc James UgBCZZZGISOJL flg 4mamver J. W. PATTERSON & J. A. WEBSTER.

MAGAZINE VENDING MACH INE. APPLICATION FILED DEC-I6, 19 12.

1 1 86,93 1 Patented June 6, 1916.

. 3 S|:;ETSSHEET 2- THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D- c.

J. W. PATTERSON & J. A. WEBSTER.

MAGAZINE VENDING MACHINE.

APPLICATlON HLED DEC-16.19l2.

1,186,031 Patented June 6,1916.

INVENTORS JOZUL fl. Websez. James VMZlfson ATTORNEY THE CQLUMBIAPLANOGRAPH c0" WASHINGTON- D. t.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES W. PATTERSON, OF LONG BEACH, NEW,YORK, AND JOHN A. WEBSTER, OFRUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNORS TO AUTOSALES GUM AND CHOCOLATECOMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

MAGAZINE VENDING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 6, 1916.

Original application filed November 27, 1911, Serial No. 662,644.Divided and this application filed December 16, 1912.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JAMES W. PATTER- SON, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing in Long Beach, county of Nassau, and State of New York,and JOHN A. WEBSTER, a citizen of the United States, residing inRutherford, county of Bergen, and State of New Jersey, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Magazine Vending-Machines, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to vending machines of the type adapted to beoperated upon the insertion of a coin for vending a suitable commodity,such as chewing-gum, candy or the like.

The machine of our invention is what is known as a continuous-actionmachine, and embodies various features of novelty over machines of thisclass heretofore constructed.

This application is a division of our application filed November 27,1911, Serial No. (362,644, and no claims are herein made to thecoin-controlled features of our machine, as they form the subject-matterof said parent application.

The purpose of our invention is to provide a continuousaction ormagazine vending machine in which the operative parts are arranged socompactly as to be housed within a casing of small dimensions, so as tobe adapted for use in theaters. The first requisite of a theater vendingmachine is that it be of such small proportions that it will notobstruct the passageway between two rows of theater chairs. In theso-called single-action theater machines, of which the prior art showsmany embodiments, the coin-controlled mechanism merely unlocks the lidsof the machine, but in magazine theater machines arises the necessity ofa movable ejecting mechanism which must be housed within a small spaceand yet be reliable in its operation. The theater magazine machines, orpenny theater machines,

as they are commonly called, command a field of usefulness for which thesingle-action machines are wholly unfitted. A single-action machine mustbe replenished after every operation, while a penny machine workscontinuously until exhausted and lasts over a considerable periodwithout the necessity of replenishlng. As the refilling of thesemachlnes must be done when the Serial No. 736,934.

theater is empty, it is obvious that in the so-called continuousperformance theaters, as vaudeville or moving picture houses,single-action machines might remain empty for hours. On the other hand,it is under just such circumstances that the magazine theater machinefinds its greatest usefulness.

The construction and arrangement of the various mechanisms of our newmachine permit of a casing of minimum dimensions with a maximumcapacity, without sacrificing or impairing the certainty of operation ofthe machine.

One object of our invention is to provide a vending machine having twomagazlnes for holding the vendible commodities, and having a commoncoin-carrier arranged beneath the magazines and normally held in aposition to receive the deposited coin, the carrier being movabletransversely of the machine in either direction from its normal positionto cause ejection of the lowermost package in either magazine. In thepreferred form of our invention the operative connection between thecoin-carrier and the knob or handle on the outside of the machine, is arack-and-pinion connection, which is exceedingly simple in constructionand operation.

Another object of our invention is to provide a vending machine having alateral deliverythat is to say, the commodity ejected from the magazinesby the ejecting mechanism is delivered to the patron throughdelivery-openings arranged in the side walls of the casing. One or bothof the side walls may be provided with a delivery-opening, according asthe machine has one or two magazines. This lateral delivery featureconduces to the compactness of the machine, for it obviates thenecessity of a separate delivery-chute. Furthermore, the operation ofthe ejecting machine and the arrangement of the magazine with respect tothe delivery opening, are such that the ejected package is retainedpartly within the magazine and partly projecting out of the casing afteraction of the ejecting mechanism on the package, so that the packagedoes not fall to the floor but remains partly exposed in the casinguntil removed by the purchaser.

Another object of our invention is to provide means for normally closingthe delivery opening, and arranged to be shifted into open position bythe ejected package itself. In the preferred form of our invention, thisclosing means comprises a pair of oppositely slidable members with theiradjoining ends beveled and arranged in the path of the ejected articlewhich forces them apart under the action of the ejecting mechanism.

A. further object of our invention is to so construct the machine thatthe interior mechanism may be readily exposed for inspection or repair,and the magazine replenished with facility. To this end we have provideda casing consisting of'a box-like section and a flat plate sectionseparably connected together. The plate section carries the magazine ormagazines, while the box-like section supports the ejecting mechanism.

The above and other objects and advantages of our invention will becomeapparent from a detailed description of the accompanying drawings whichform part of this specification and in which Figure 1 represents a frontview of the machine embodying the several features of our invention, thefront plate or wall of the casing being omitted so as to expose theparts within; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal crosssectional view on line 'IIIIof Fig. 1, the hinged section of the casing being shown in openposition; F ig. 3 is an interior face view of the hinged section of ourmachine, showing the coin-carrier and the slot-closer; Fig. el is alongitudinal cross-sectional view on line IVIV of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is atop plan view of Fig. 3; Fig. 6 is a plan View in cross-section taken online VI-VI of F ig. 3; Fig. Tis a fragmentary view in elevation of oneof the side walls of the casing. showing how the ejected package isdeli'v cred through the lateral delivery-opening provided in the casing;Fig. 8 is a crosssectional view taken on line VIIIVIII of Fig. 7 Fig. 9is a view similar to Fig. 1 (the upper portion of the casing beingbroken away), showing the coin-carrier in the act of ejecting thelowermost package from one of the magazines; Fig. 10 is a longitudinalcross-sectional view on line XX of Fig. 9; Fig. 11 is an interior faceview of a portion of the hinged section of the casing, showing thecoincarrier in full lines at the limit of its movement to one side ofits normal or central position, and in dotted lines at the limit of itsmovement in the other direction; Fig. 12 shows a side view of thecoin-carrier and the movable coinretaining platform. mounted thereon;Fig. 13 shows a top plan view of Fig. 11; and Fig. 14 is a plan view ofthe coin-supporting plate arranged underneath the coincarrier forsupporting the coin and also for preventing return movement of thecarrier unless its forward or operating movement is completed.

The various parts of our new form of machine are housed within a casingindicated as a whole by (J. which is preferably constructed of somesuitable metal and is given on the outside a finished and attractiveappearance.

In view of the simplicity of the operating mechanism within the casing,the latter may be made of small dimensions, so that when the machine isattached to the back of a theater chair, it will not prove anobstruction to the passage of persons through the aisles between therows of chairs. The casing C is shown as consisting of a flat section 1and a box-like section 2. In the particular embodiment illustrated, theflat section forms the back plate of the casing and is adapted to besecured to a suitable support 3, which may for instance be the back of atheater chair. The two sections are removably or separably connectedtogether in any suitable way, as for instance by a hinge 4 which allowsthe box-like section to be swung downwardly into open position, therebyexposing the interior of the casing for ready access to all the parts.

The hinged section 2 comprises the top panel 5, the bottom panel 6, thefront plate or panel 7 and the two side plates or panels 8 and The backplate or stationary section 1 of the casing is provided with aforwardly-extending top flange 10 and forwardlyextending side flanges 11and 12, as best shown in Figs. 1 and 2. lVhen the hinged section 2 is inclosed position, the horizontally projecting flanges on the back plate 1overlap and snugly surround the edge of the pivoted section, as shown inFig. 1, and thus produce a tight, effective closure. The swingingsection is held locked to the back plate of the casing by any suitablelocking means. For the sake of illustration, we

have shown the back plate provided with a pair of recessed lugs 13 whichare adaptedto be engaged by the projecting ends of the locking bolts 14of the lock L secured to the underside of the top plate The lock L maybe of any suitable construction, and as it forms nopart of our presentinvention we have not deemed it necessary to illustrate and describe thedetails of any specific form of lock. It may be stated that the lockingbolts 14.- are adapted to snap automatically into engagement with thelugs 13 when the swinging section. is moved into closed position. Torelease the lock L a key is inserted into a slot provided for thatpurpose near the top of the swinging section, as is done with many ofthe locks shown in the prior art.

To the back plate 1 of the casing are secured two magazines indicated asa Whole by M and M. These magazines are conveniently formed out of sheetmetal and comprise each a back plate 15, sides 16 and front flanges 17which project inwardly at substantially right angles to the sides. Thebottom 18 of the magazines may be most conveniently formed by providingthe back plate with an extension which is bent forwardly and thenupwardly at 19. The upwardly-bent portion 19 forms a vertical flangewhich engages the lower end of the upright flanges 17, whereby a compactand rigid structure is produced. The bottom 18 of each magazine isprovided with a slot 20 through which the coin in the coin-carrierprojects, as will be described in detail later on. Each magazine isadapted to receive the commodity desired to be vended. In the drawingsthe magazine M holds packages G which may be a commodity of one kind, asfor instance, chewing-gum, while the magazine l\ holds packages K whichmay be a commodity of another kind, as for instance, candy. The uprightflanges 17 serve to retain the packages in the magazines even when themachine is tilted forwardly. Each magazine is provided at the lower endof its outer side with a discharge opening of suflicient size to permitthe packages contained in the magazine to be laterally ejected throughthis opening. In Fig. 1, the lateral discharge opening for magazine M isindicated at 21, while the lateral discharge opening of the magazine Mis indicated at 22.

The ejecting mechanism comprises the coin-carrier 23 provided with acoin-slot 24, as best shown in Figs. 6 and 13. The'normal position ofthe coin-carrier 23 is such that the coin-slot 24 is in verticalalinement with the coin chute 25 which is formed between the adjacentsides of the magazines M and M, as shown in Figs. 1 and 9. The adj acentsides of the magazines are spaced just sufficiently to provide the coinchute 25 for directing the deposited coin into the coinslot of thecoin-carrier. Any suitable means may be provided for normally holdingthe coin-carrier in central position. In the specific embodimentillustrated in the drawings, this means consists of a pair of dogs 26and 27 which are pivoted at 28 and 29, respectively, to the inner faceof the front plate 7. A contractile spring 30 normally holds the dogs 26and 27 toward each other, as indicated in Fig. 1. The inward movement ofthe dogs is limited by the stops 31 secured to the front plate 7. Attheir free ends the dogs 26 and 27 engage the opposite ends of theextension 32 on the rack bar 33 which is secured to the plate 34 of thecoin-carrier. hen the coin-carrier is moved to one side or the other,the spring 30 allows one or the other of the dogs 26 and 27 to yield, asshown in Fig. 9, so that the coin-carrier will, upon release, beautomatically moved back to normal or central position.

We would have it understood that our invention is not limited to theprecise means shown and described for normally holding the coin-carrierin central position and automatically returning it to such position ".i

upon release at the end of its forward movement. Other suitable meansmay be provided for this purpose, although the means which we haveherein set forth is very simple and effective. The teeth of the rack bar33 are in mesh with the teeth of the rotatable pinion 35 mounted on thesquared end of the stud 36 projecting inwardly from a suitablehand-operated member 37 which is for the sake of illustration shown inthe form of a cylindrical knob. A screw 36 holds the pinion 35 securelyon the stud 36. The knob may be readily grasped by the hand of thepatron, so as to cause rotation of the pinion 35 in one direction or theother, as desired.

It will be seen from the above that we have provided an exceedinglysimple driving connection between the hand-operated member 37 and thecoin-carrier 23. In order to guide the motion of the coin-carrier wehave provided the rack bar 33 with a pair of guide lugs 38 which extendthrough the transverse slot 39 in the front plate 7 and engage the outerface of the front plate above and below the slot 39. To close the slot39 from the outside, we provide a suitable cover'plate 40 which has arecess 41 for accommodating the guide lugs 38. It will be noticed thatthe guide lugs 38 also serve as means for supporting the coin-carrier onthe front plate of the machine.

The side 8 is provided with a deliveryopening 42 in horizontal alinementwith the lateral discharge opening 21 in the magazine M. Similarly, theside 9 of the casing is provided with a delivery-opening 43 inhorizontal alinement with the discharge opening 22 of the magazine 1 Thelateral delivery-openings 42 and 43 are of such dimensions as to permitthe ready discharg therethrough of the ejected packages. In order toclose the delivery-openings 42 and 43 against the outside, so as toprevent the insertion of an instrument into the machine,

we provide a pair of movable locking jaws for each delivery-opening.These jaws, while normally closing the delivery-openings, are adapted tobe separated by the ejected package. At the locking jaws for the twodelivery-openings are identical, it will only be necessary to describein detail the jaws associated with one of the delivery-openingslet ussay, the opening 43. Referring particularly to Figs. 4, 7 and 8, it willbe seen that the upper jaw 44 is provided with a pairof s1ots'45 whichengage the studs 46 rigidly secured to the side of the casing andprojecting inwardly therefrom. The upper jaw 44.normally rests bygravity in the position shown in Fig. 4, with the top of the slots 45resting upon the lugs 46. The lower jaw A7 is provided with a pair ofslots 48 in which engage the lugs 49 secured to the side of the casingand extending inwardly therefrom. A suitable spring 50 secured at oneend to the stud 51 and passing at an intermediate point around the stud52, engages with its free end the underside of the lower jaw 47 to holdthe same in its upper or closed position, as shown in Fig. 4. The studs51 and 52 extend inwardly from the side of the casing. The upper jaw 4is provided with teeth 53, while the lower jaw is provided with teeth54. The teeth of the jaws are staggered so as to interlock when the jawsare in closed position. This interlocking position of the jaws is bestshown in Fig. 4. It will be observed that the lower edge of the upperjaw is beveled at 55, and the free edge of the lower jaw is beveled at56. The purpose of these beveled portions is to permit ready se iarationof the jaws by the ejected package. Thus, in Fig. 8, the ejected packageK which is traveling in the direction indicated by the arrow, has forcedthe jaws apart by the outer end of the package bearing against theoppositelyinclined surfaces of the beveled portions 55 and 56.

The coin is held in the slot of the carrier 23 by the plate or shelf 57secured to the back plate 1 in any suitable manner, as, for instance, byscrews or rivets 58 passing through the rear flange 59 of the shelf intothe back plate 1. Fig. 10 shows how the coin P in the coin-carrier 23rests upon the shelf 57. As best shown in the same figure, it will beseen that the upper portion of the coin P in the coin-carrier extendsbeyond the underside of the lowermost packages in the magazines, so thatwhen the coin-carrier is moved to one side or the other of its normalposition, the upper portion of the de posited coin will engage the innerend of the lowermost package of one or the other magazine (dependentupon the direction in which the carrier travels), and force this packagethrough the lateral discharge opening of the magazine and through thedelivery-opening in the side of the casing. Fig. 9 shows the carriermoved part way under the magazine M, the coin P having partially ejectedthe lowermost package K. In order to prevent return movement of thecoincarrier be-' fore its forward or operative movement has beencompleted, the shelf 57 is provided with two sets of ratchet teeth 60and 61. In the particular instance illustrated in the drawings, theseteeth are formed by slotting the shelf 57 at 62 and 63 and thendisplacing the ends of the slotted portions laterally to form steps orratchet teeth 60 and 61. The teeth 60 provide depressions at 60, whilethe teeth 61 provide depressions at .61. As a result of thisconstruction, the coin in the coin-carrier is free to ride over theteeth 60 and 61 during the forward or operative movement of thecoin-carrier, but any return movement of the coin-carrier before itsforward movement is completed is arrested by the coin engaging thedepressions 60 or 61, as may be seen from Fig. 9. lVhen the coin-carrierhas completed its forward movement either to the right or to the left,the coin P passes oft the shelf 57 and consequently drops through slot24 of the coincarrier into a receptacle B. The lower ends of theadjacent sides 16 of the magazines are notched as shown at 64 in Fig. 2to allow the coin in the carrier to pass from its central or normalposition under one or the other magazine.

From the above description of our new form of machine, the operationthereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art, but we may herebriefly state the operation as follows: When a coin is deposited in theslot 65, it passes down the coin chute 25 into the slot 241: of thecoin-carrier 23, where it is held substantially in the positionillustrated in Fig. 10. In this, its central or normal position, theupper portion of the coin projects between the lower ends of the twomagazines. The proper coin having been thus deposited in the machine,the patron next turns the knob 37 in one direction or the other,according as he desires a package from the magazine M or from themagazine M. Assuming for the sake of illustration that the patron wantsa package of candy K, he turns the knob in a counter-clockwise directionas far as it will go. This operation of the knob 37 rotates the pinion35 in the same direction as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 9. Themovement of the pinion 35 is communicated to the rack bar 33 by means ofthe toothed connection above described, so that the rack bar is movedlaterally of the casing under the magazine 1 until the outer end of therack bar abuts against the side of the easing, as shown in Fig. 11. Itis this contact of the rack bar 33 with the side of the casing thatarrests the rotative movement of the knob 37 During the forward movementof the coin-carrier, the coin P engages at itsupper portion with theinner end of the lowermost package K and forces the same through thedischarge-opening 22 and the delivery-opening 43 in the side 9 of thecasing. Just before the rack bar 33 abuts against the side of thecasing, the coin P in the carrier passes beyond the shelf 57 andconsequently drops out of the slot 24 into the coin receptacle B. Theejected package is not forced out of the machine altogether so as tofall through the delivery-opening 43, but is ejected from the magazinesufiiciently to protrude through the deliveryopening in the casing, sothat the patron may grasp the protruding end of the ejected package andextract the same from the machine. Upon extraction of the package, theremaining packages in the magazine fall down by gravity, so that thelowermost package of the remaining packages may be ejected in the mannerabove described by a subsequent operation of the machine. Should thepatron desire a package G from the magazine M he rotates the knob 37 inaclockwise direction as far as it will go, during which movement theoperation above described is repeated with respect to the lowermostpackage in the magazine M.

The advantages of having an ejected packageretained in the casing, areobvious. If the package were ejected entirely out of the casing, thepurchaser would have to be on his guard to catch the package, otherwiseit would fall to the floor and the purchaser might have difficulty infinding it, as theaters are usually kept dark.

It may sometimes happen that a coin is deposited when the coin-carrieris not in its normal or central position. For instance, a person mayrotate the knob 37 and then deposit a coin in the machine. In thisevent, the coin-carrier would not be in a position to receive thedeposited coin and in order to prevent av loss of this coin to thepatron, we have provided means whereby a coin deposited under theseconditions is retained at the bottom of the coin chute until thecoin-carrier is brought to normal position, whereupon the coinautomatically drops into operative position on the carrier.

From opposite sides of the com-carrier extend the arms 66 on which isslidably mounted the coin-retaining platform indicated as a whole by B.This platform consists of a body portion 67 from which extend forwardlythe arms 68. As best shown in Fig. 12, these arms are looped at theirfree ends to provide openings or recesses in which the arms 66 engage.In this way the coin-retaining platform R is slidably mounted on thecoin-carrier. The body portion 67 of the platform B may rest upon therear end of the coin-carrier, as shown in Figs. 6 and 12, to provide afirm support for the platform. The operation'of this coin-retainingplatform is as follows: Let us suppose that the coin-carrier has beenmoved to one side of its normal or central position, as shown in Fig.11. If now a coin P is depositedin the machine, it will fall down thecoin chute .25 upon the platform B. As the coin-carrier returns tonormal position, the coin P is retained at the bottom of the coin chuteby the platform R until the coin slot 24 of the coin-carrier registerswith the coin chute 25, whereupon the coin automatically drops intooperative position on the coin-carrier. The knob may therefore be turnedin one direction or the other and the machine will eject a package fromone of the magazines in the manner above described. In the broad aspectof our invention relating to the coin-retaining platform, it is notessential that the platform be movable on the coincarrier. However, inthe preferred form of our invention the platform R is movably oradjustably mounted on the coin-carrier because this arrangement enablesthe coin-carrier to continue its travel after the platform has abuttedagainst the inwardly-turned flange 69, as shown in Fig. 11. It may herebe stated that besides forming a stop for the coin-retaining platform R,the flanges 69 assist in guiding the movements of the locking jaws 44and 47, as best shown in Fig. 4. By thus permitting the coin-carrier tocontinue its travel even after the platform has reached the limit of itsmovement by abutting against the flanges 69, we are enabled to obtain alonger ejection stroke of the coincarrier without the necessity ofwidening the casing. This longer ejection stroke of the coin-carrierforces the package through the casing a considerable distance, so thatit may be easily grasped by the hand of the patron for extraction fromthe machine. We have also provided a simple and effective means forautomatically closing or obstructing the coin slot 65 when the lastpackage has been ejected from one or the other of the two magazines.Referring particularly to Figs. 1, 3 and 4, it will be observed that anarm 70 is pivoted to the inner face of the front plate 7 by means of thestud 71. The upper end of the arm terminates in a pair ofrearwardly-extending lugs 72 which are separated from each other by theslot 7 3. It will be seen from Fig. 3 that the slot 73 of the arm 7 0 isnormally in register with the coin slot 65 in the top of the casing, sothat under these conditions the proper coin may be freely inserted inthe machine. To hold the slot-closing arm 70 in its normal position, Weprovide a little spring-blade 74, which at one end engages in the slot 75 of the arm 70. At its other end the springblade 74 is firmly securedto the stud 76 carried on the inner face of the front plate 7. In orderto permit movement of the arm 70 to either side of its normal position,the arm is provided with a cut-out portion 77. The movement of the armin either direction is limited by the walls of the opening or cut-outportion 77 striking the lug 76. At its bottom the arm 7 O is providedwith a pair of camlike flanges 78. A weight or block of metal 79 restsupon the packages in each magazine and is adapted to descend by gravityin the magazine as the packages are ejected. Each of the weights orblocks 79 is provided with a pair of lugs 80 which project forwardlyfromv the front face of the weight Each lug has formed thereon acam-surface 81. When the last package has been ejected from osition of acoin in the machine when oneof the magazines is empty. The object ofproviding two cam lugs 80 one each block 79 are inserted in themagazines, as long as the lugs. project forwardly, the upper lug willalways be in position to cam the arm into slotclosing position when thelast package has been ejected. The upright flanges 19 at the bottom ofthe, magazines are notched or cut out at 82 to accommodate the lowerlugs 80 of the blocks 79, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3. lVhereonly one lug is used on the blocks, the notches 82 are of course notnecessary.

The coin box or receptacle B, previously referred to, is convenientlyhinged to the pin or hingeconnection f which connects the two sectionsof the casing together, as already stated. The receptacle B is providedwith perforated ears or lugs 83 through which the pin 4 passes. When thecasing is closed, the coin receptacle B is held in an upright positionby the front section. As this section is swung open, the coin receptacle B automatically tilts forwardly until the rear side thereofengages the downwardly-projecting flange Slformed on the coin-sustainingshelf 57. This position of the coin box B is shown in Fig. 2. It will beclear that this forward tilting of the box or receptacle B renders easyaccess to the contents thereof. The front wall of the coin receptacle Bis cut away at 85 so as not to interfere with the operating parts of theejecting mechanism.

lVhile we have herein shown and described in detail one specificembodiment of the various features which characterize our invention, wewould have it understood that we do not wish to be limited to suchdetails, since changes and modifications may be made by those skilled inthe art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined inthe appended claims. It is furthermore apparent that certain features ofour invention may be embodied in a machine without the presence ofcertain other features.

Having thus described our invention what we claim as new and desire tosecure by Let'- ters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a vending machine, a fiat and substantially rectangular casingprovided with a delivery opening in one of its side walls, a. verticalmagazine having a lateral dis charge opening in register with saiddelivery openin mechanism movable transversely of said casing to causeejection of the packages laterally from said magazine through saiddelivery opening, a. pivoted member mounted on the front wall of saidcasing for manually operating said mechanism, and means within thecasing for retaining the ejected package in the casing with its endprojecting through said delivery opening after action of said mechanismupon the package.

2. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a flat section separably connectedtogether to aflord ready access to the interior of the casing, saidbox-like section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls, avertical magazine secured to said plate section to contain the vendiblearticles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged to registerwith said delivery opening when the sections are in closed position, andmanually operable mechanism movable transversely of said casing forejecting the articles from said magazine through said delivery opening.

3. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a fiat plate section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls,a vertical magazine secured to said plate section to contain thevendible articles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged atthe bottom thereof to register with said delivery opening when thesections are in closed position, mechanism mounted in said box-likesections and movable transversely of said casing for engaging thelowermost article and pushing the same laterally out of said magazinethrough said delivery opening. and means project ing out of saidboX-like section to operate said mechanism.

4:. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow bOX-like section and a flat section separably connectedtogether to afford ready access to the interior of the casing, saidbox-like section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls, a.vertical magazine secured to said plate section to contain the vendiblearticles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged to registerwith said delivery opening when the sections are in closed position,manually operable mechanism movable in the plane of said casing forejecting the articles from said magazine through said delivery opening,and means within the casing for retaining the ejected package in thecasing with its end project ing out of delivery opening after action ofsaid mechanism upon the package.

5. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a flat plate section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls,a vertical magazine secured to said plate section to contain thevendible articles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged atthe bottom thereof to register with said delivery opening when thesections are in closed position, mechanism mounted in said boX-likesection and movable transversely of said casing for engaging thelowermost article and pushing the same laterally out of said magazinethrough said delivery opening, means projecting out of said box-likesection to operate said mechanism, and means within the casing retainingthe ejected package in the casing with its end projecting out of saiddelivery opening after action of said mechanism upon the package.

6. In a vending machine, a casing consisting of a shallow box-likesection and a flat plate section separably connected together to affordready access to the interior of the casing, a vertical magazine securedto said plate section, and mechanism operatively mounted on the mainwall of said boxlike section to discharge the packages laterally fromsaid magazine.

7. In a vending machine. a casing having two magazines arranged side byside. said magazines having each a lateral discharge opening at thebottom of the outer side, a. single ejecting device movable transverselyof said casing beneath said magazines to force the lowermost package ofeither maga zine only partially through the discharge opening thereofwithout wholly ejecting the same from the magazine, a single handoperated member for actuating said device in either direction, and meansfor automatically restoring said device to normal position midway ofsaid magazines upon release of said actuating member. v 1

8. In a vending machine, a flat and substantially rectangular casingprovided with a delivery opening in each side wall, two magazinesarranged side by side within said casing and having lateral dischargeopenings in horizontal alinement with said delivery opening, a singleejecting device arranged centrally between said magazines and movable ineither direction from its normal position, a manually operable membermounted in the front plate of said casing for moving said devicetransversely of the casing in either direction from its normal positionto cause lateral ejection of the lowermost package in either magazine,and means for automatically restoring said device to normal positionupon release of said member.

9. In a vending machine, a flat and substantially rectangular casingprovided with position to cause lateral ejection of the lowermostpackage in either magazine, means for automatlcally restoring salddeviceto normal position upon release of said P member, and yieldable meansfor normally maintaining said lateral delivery openings closed, saidmeans being. adapted to be engaged by the ejected article itself andmoved into open position.

10. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a flat plate section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls,a vertical magazine secured to said plate section to contain thevendible articles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged toregister with said delivery opening when the sections are in closedposition, and manually operable mechanism mounted in said box-likesection for ejecting the articles laterally from said magazine throughsaid delivery opening.

11. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a flat plate section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls,a vertical. magazine secured to said plate section to contain thevendible articles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged toregister with said delivery opening when the sections are in closedposition, manually operable mechanism movable transversely of saidcasing for ejecting the articles from said magazine through saiddelivery opening, and a pair of oppositely movable slides for normallymaintaining said lateral delivery opening closed, said slides havingoppositely beveled portions adapted to be engaged by the ejected packageitself and moved into open position. v r

12. In a vending machine, a casing having a delivery opening, a magazinefor containing the vendible articles, mechanism for ejecting thearticles from said magazine through said delivery opening, and a pair ofoppositely movable members for normally closing said opening andarranged to be automatically shifted into open position by the ejectedarticle itself.

13. In a vending machine provided With a delivery Opening and withmechanism for ejecting the vendible articles therefrom, a pair ofoppositely movable gates for normally closing said opening and arrangedto have their adjacent ends engaged by the ejected article itself,whereby the gates are separated into open position.

14. In a vending machine provided with a delivery opening and withmechanism for ejecting the vendible articles therefrom, a pair ofoppositely reciprocable slides having interlocking teeth for normallyclosing said delivery opening and arranged to be engaged by the ejectedarticle itself, whereby the gates are moved into open position.

15. In a vending machine, a casing having a delivery opening, mechanismfor ejecting the vendible articles therethrough, and a pair ofoppositely movable members for normally closing said opening, saidmembers having oppositely beveled meeting ends arranged in the path ofthe ejected article to be engaged thereby and separated into openposition.

16. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a .flat plate-section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls,a vertical magazine within said casing to contain the vendible articles,said magazine having a discharge opening arranged to register with saiddelivery opening, and manually operable mechanism movable transverselyof said casing for ejecting the articles out of said magazine throughsaid delivery opening.

17. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a fiat plate-section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of its side walls,a vertical magazine within said casing to contain the vendible articles,said magazine having a discharge opening arranged to register with saiddelivery opening, manually operable mechanism movable transversely ofsaid casing for ejecting the articles out of said magazine through saiddelivery opening, and means within the casing for retaining the ejectedarticle in the casing with its end projecting out of said deliveryopening after action of said mechanism upon the article.

18. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a flat plate-secti0n separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of thecasing,.said boxlike section having a delivery opening in one of itsside walls, a vertical magazine within said casing to contain thevendible articles, mechanism movable transversely of said casing forejecting the articles from said magazine through said delivery opening,and a rotatable member mounted on the front wall of said casing foroperating said mechanism.

19. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow boxdike section and a flat plate-section separablyconnected together to afford ready access to the interior of the casing,said box-like section having a delivery opening in one of its sidewalls, a vertical magazine within said casing to contain the vendiblearticles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged at thebottom thereof to register with said delivery opening, mecha nismmounted in said box-like section and movable transversely of said casingfor engaging the lowermost article and pushing the same laterally out ofsaid magazine through said delivery opening, and means projecting out ofsaid box-like section. to operate said mechanism.

20. In a vending machine, a substantially rectangular casing consistingof a shallow box-like section and a flat plate-section separablyconnected together to aiford ready access to the interior of the casing,said box like section having a delivery opening in one of its sidewalls, a vertical magazine within said casing to contain the vendiblearticles, said magazine having a discharge opening arranged at thebottom thereof to register with said delivery opening, mechanism mountedin said box-like section and movable transversely of said casing forengaging the lowermost article and pushing the same laterally outof saidmagazine through said delivery opening, means projecting out of saidbox-like section to operate said mechanism, and means within the casingfor retaining the ejected article in the casing with its end projectingout of said delivery opening after action of said mechanism upon thearticle.

In witness whereof, we hereunto subscribe our names this 9th day ofDecember,

JAMES IV. PATTERSON. JOHN A. WVEBSTER.

Witnesses:

A. A. THOMAS, LUELLA F. LITTLE.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. Q.

